Stats: (start with 7 points)(All stats automatically get 1 point, and you can add a total of 7 points to the three stats. A sample distribution is Physique 3, Appearance and divine favour: 3 and Agility: 4)Physique 1-6Strength, stamina and toughness

Appearance and divine favour 1-6Used when roleplaying (your actions determine your persuasion, bartering and such skills, but appearance matters. Divine favour matters when it comes to randomness and luck).

Agility 1-6Used for evasion, running speed and initiative-----------------------------------------------Skills: (start with 7 points)(All start at 1. Sample distribution#1: Melee 5, Ranged 2, Subterfuge 3, all else 1-Sample distribution#2: Melee 2, Language: Imperial speech 4, Lore: Imperial lore 4)Melee 1-6 (general weapon skill. You choose which weapons... (yes, the system is this simple)Ranged 1-6 (whether slung, shot or thrown)Subterfuge 1-6 (Stealth related skills, includes hiding and sleight of hand)Instant spellcasting: 1-6 (quick convenience spells. Please come up with interesting description and gameplay)Ritual spellcasting: 1-6 (powerful but demanding spells. These spells are excellent roleplaying material in themselves)Other: (Might be any craft or skill that is appropriate (ie. herbalism is ok, biochemistry is not) Languages and lore are available and will be detailed to those who wish to allot skillpoints to such. ---------------------------------------------

Ok. This is a trivial system I had in mind. The purpose is to create a character as you guys normally do, but in addition you send me the stats and skills per pm. The obvious intention is to have something to base the roleplaying on. If you have 1 in melee, you won't swing your sword Conan-style. If you have 1 in physique, you will definitely be knocked out by a woman's punch, unless you manage to avoid the punch, and so on.

One thing: having a number as reference is a poor excuse for writing stuff like: "I attack with my 4 skill shortsword lunge"... Roleplay as you normally do, the numbers are for reference an d will be used by me and me alone (other than giving you an idea of your general skill level).

The initial storyWar. War has come to the northern Kingdom of Silmaroth and the mercenaries are flocking to the banners of the King. In the south the imperials are moving, their legions are pouring across the borders, supported by their famous cavalry archers, and backed up by the lethal spell fire of the Imperial Viziers, the dogs of chaos. Helpless villages are razed to the ground, and the air is torn by the screams of the innocents. The Kingdom is in dire peril. For all its might and all its armies, the kingdom has been caught unprepared. Before the King had managed to muster his army, the towns of Eckholt and Malenna had already fallen, quickly becoming fortified strongholds, filled to the brim of enemy soldiers.

In the middle of all this are the Chosen of Captain Craeth, a mercenary band whose luck has seen better days. Yet, one month ago, it seemed that their luck might finally turn to the better. In the port town of Arbad, the famous noble, Marcus El-Kaddath, was hiring. The mission was an expedition of national importance, a journey into the mountain range known as the Cyllereans, to visit the ancient remains of Ũr-Keldon, the fallen city of Kings, where the royal line once dwelt. So the captain agreed, the pockets of the men were filled with precious silver, 10% paid in advance, and after nights of partying the noble and his entourage arrived. Soon the journey had begun.

Yet only some hours ago, after two weeks of travel, over two thirds of the mercenaries perished. In one fell stroke, mountain tribals had ambushed the mercenaries killing them by the dozens. The incident occurred just as the company was ascending a hillside amidst large boulders and steep cliffs. The winding trail they followed had taken them to a place where the wind swept through a narrow pass, a grove of trees blocking the line of sight. Just as most of the mercenaries had entered the pass, the savages had struck, and the mercenaries could only die, with no room to manoeuvre, the surprise disrupted their unity, rendered them unable to organize proper defences. They died screaming. Yet the captain had survived; he had stayed behind to supervise the passage of his men.

And so the story begins, a couple of hours later, as fatigued soldiers cautiously probe their way through the Kettlemire woods, where the Broken Hills connect with Mount Keadle, and the ascent up into the mountains begin in earnest. Occasionally screams tear through the forest, as some mercenaries come in contact with advance elements of the savages in pursuit. There is fear in the cold, mountain air, and the chants of the tribals only grow louder.

The ProtagonistsBrave heroes are needed, to play the role as hapless mercenaries, on the run, between a rock and a hard place.

Death, unconsciousness and dyingDeath is possible in this game, although the threshold of death should be acceptably high for all players involved.Death is based on:Divine favour (luck)Physique (damage capacity)Armour and shields (includes protective magic)(blocking damage)Agility (evading damage)Melee skill (parrying)

Please notice that prolonged absences from the game WILL decrease your divine favour. When it reaches suitably low levels, death becomes an imminent danger in every situation.

I'm in. There seems to be no hurry in having a character ready in the next few days . So I will take my time making one. I'll PM him to you in a few weeks. Hope this game starts in june though,I can hardly wait until September.

The reason for the stat system was twofold:1. I am going to accept less experienced players and I wanted to evade munchkin tendencies. (One can be a master, but then one has to suffer being an idiot in every other field).

2. To have a mechanism to determine death. It is so boring when people drop out of the game, and I wanted something to urge people to continue playing. With this system skill points can be given as rewards for dutiful committment to the game, and divine favour can be deducted from those less diligent. (Divine favour can be gained too, but that is another matter entirely). Note that the appearance does not decrease or increase, it is just some bonuses and penalties which I log in my notebook.

I interpreted the captain as having some reservations, and I can only deduct it is because of the system rules experiment. Do not hesitate to spill your liver in this regard, I am open to suggestions, complaints and reservations

The game itself is a normal roleplaying game, and not a wargame. It just so happens that at this point in the story, you guys are mercs.

*********************************Random facts:The scenario will be played in chapters. Each chapter will begin with an excerpt from the Captain's Journal, provided he is still alive and with you.

Sometimes you will get interludes describing the actions of other, non-present, important members of the cast. You guys have no ideas about what they are actually doing. This is included to add flavour to the game.If you do not like this feature, please let me know.

You can chose whatever non-magical equipment you like, but keep in mind that you are from an area favouring chainmail, plate armour, brigandine, and various studded leather designs. You are about to enter the snow covered parts of the mountains and warm clothing is an advantage. Remember that the mercs have been down on their luck, and that their equipment should reflect this.

Forbidden classes: royalty and nobility.

Spells: You get a number of spells similar to your instant and/or ritual spell skill -1. You get to decide the flavour of the spell, but I have a veto concerning it's potency. Remember that ritual spells require hours and days of spellcasting (or riftweaving as is the mage's definition).

-Bows and one handed long weapons require a physique of at least 2-Two handed weapons like great axes and claymores require a physique of at least 3-Rapiers require an agility of at least 3 and only a fool use the rapier if his skill with it is less than formidable. It is known as a duellists weapon.l

Estimated length of game:Long campaign! This will be the first chapter in a long campaign. Players are expected to last a chapter at least and the entire campaign at best (if they like it).

Estimated length of each chapter:Short to middle length. Will probably not reach two digit page numbers.

Who can play?There are no written invitations. If you want to join you should let us know in this thread.

Number of players required:2-8. The current number of characters (2 at the time of writing) is fine, as it assures a quick paced game.

Importance of statistics and skills:Self reference only. Almost no dice rolls, nothing except the GM performing NPCs based on the characters skill and stats (comparing their skill and stats).

One thing: The Divine Favour attribute is dependent on dice rolls, and might save your life if skill cannot.

Background information:Some is presented here, but a prologue will be included with the same information and more, presented in a more theatrical manner. Please request information you feel you should have. The plot will be pretty vague in the beginning, but clarity will dawn more and more as each chapter reveals yet more pieces of precious information.

Player information:Non-stat information can be posted here. I do not want the game reduced to numbers, but I do want use numbers for self reference (as in a normal tabletop game).

Are the chapters in sequence:Yes, the storyline will be a related sequence of events. Time might easily pass between the chapters though.

What kind of roleplaying will this be?Ever played Warhammer or Call of Cthulhu? This is something in between those two. Coldforged is a dark setting full of sinister secrets and foul entities. A setting where glorious heroes arise to the task and face near impossible odds.

Could those who are going to play please create their characters now? Remember that the character is much more important than the numbers, though I guess I need not tell you guys that

To potential players: Entering or exiting the game should only happen between chapters or upon character death. As soon as any player (non-gm) has posted twice, we are "mid chapter" and you cannot enter the game until the next chapter.

When you are finished with your character please pm him/her to me.

Those who are going to play spell casters may ask for sorcerous information. Remember that most Ritual spells are roleplaying oriented, while instant spells are combat oriented. This is not an absolute rule, but an okay rule of thumb.

Crafts:Alchemy (The production and treatment of gases, explosives and acids)Animal handling and training ArmourerArt (Stone sculpting, drawing, every art)Astrology, palmistry and general divinationBoating and SeamanshipBowyerBrewingCarpentryCartographyConstruction (Engineer)Cooking, butchering and meat preparationDisguise / Make upDrive (Wagons) and vehicle repairFarmingFirst aidFishingGemcutting / JewelerHeraldry and noble lineage loreHerbalism (The production of potions and ointments)HerdingHistoryHunting and Tracking (Ranged determines weapon skill)MasonryMusic (Catch all)SmithTailoring, Leatherworking and Textile DesignTrap craftingTorture and anatomy

All role playing related skills such as barter, fast talk, seduction, intelligence, tactics, wisdom and orate will be judged from the actual performance by the player.

Skill such as willpower, paired athletics, love craft and “kama sutra mastery” will be left up to the player in question to decide.

I got a question about sorcerers and magic phobia in Silmaroth: Here is what I answered

Quote

Yep, wizards are hunted like vermin in Silmar, the western province of Silmaroth. The mercenaries are based in Ardamien, the eastern province of Silmaroth*.

Still the tolerance for magic users is really low, there are many from Silmar in Ardamien and the Hexenjaegers travel through Ardamien although they have little popular support there. They are primarily a Silmar based organization.

The mercenaries are a bunch of dirty, unfair, cheap tricksters who use every option available to them (at least this bunch of mercenaries is). The regular army has hexenjaegers to cope with the Imperial Viziers, but seldom do one of the witch hunters enlist as a mercenary. In many ways the Silmarite bias towards magic and witchcraft disable them in combat against cultures who tolerate or even endorse magic.

If anyone should want to play a Silmarite HexenJaeger, a sorcerer would be in a lot of trouble. HexenJaegers have no magic skills, but do get an anti-magic cult necklace to boost their resistances against it. The HexenJaegers kill sorcerors through persecution and assassination, on the battlefield by directing all their energy to strike at the very spot the sorcerers operate from, cutting into the heart of the enemy.

*The provinces used to be separate kingdoms until the great anti-imperial union several hundred years ago, when the Queen of Ardamien (then called Ardamoth) married the King of Silmar and the captial was moved to Koenigsburg (in Silmar)

By the way: Major guide to Silmaroth 25% finished (It will be a detailed post)

Ok, we have two characters ready for action:A Witch and a Warrior. Could the respective players post public information in this thread?

I am going to force friendship upon you, brethren in arms and all that. You have fought together for some months, although you are among the more recent recruits. Still there will be little room for intra party treachery and backstabbing. I little grunting and yelling is fine, but not throat slitting and poisoning

The below is not required reading. It is background material of the setting. It is a lot of information and some of it is pretty trivial. I am only scratching the surface of the Kingdom here, and I actually left out quite a number of Duchies, Counties and Baronies.

The Kingdom of SilmarothThe Kingdom of Silmaroth was formerly two different kingdoms which were united in 732 when the Queen of Ardamoth married the King of Silmar, sealing their union against the Southern Empire of Caresh. By this time the Empire had finally absorbed the long since defeated Empire of Belemar, leaving only the rebels on the naval island of Dholg which continues to remain defiant even to this very day.

The Province of SilmarThe Province of Silmar is the cold and windswept area from the tip of Cape Murder in the North, to the Imperial Border in the south. Silmar is a place of suspicions and of persecutions; a place where magic users are burnt at the stake and crusades are launched frequently. The reasons for the crusades may wary, but the basics remain the same; the lure of the dark arts has consumed someone and a Crusade must be launched to purge that which has succumbed to darkness.

Silmar is also a land of dark coniferous forests and shadowy marshes filled with moss and mushrooms. The Province Silmar is separated from the Province of Ardamien by the huge mountain range known as the Cyllerean Mountains, wherein dwells the Mountain Trolls and the savage barbarian nations. The Province is also known for its many silver mines and its picturesque villages. Some travellers claim that Silmar is a paradise inhabited by the denizens of hell, a place so mysterious and beautiful that the inhabitants have become obsessed with the idea of cleansing it of evil. Thus they spend most of their lives, distrustful and looking over their shoulders; always prepared to point an accusing finger, before the finger is pointed at them.

Piety is important in Silmar and often the act of being pious is more important than the actual faith in itself. People talk of the pious and the devout ones, and those wretches living in sin. Sin leads to seduction, seduction is the way the infernal ones lure people to witchcraft, and witchcraft is the ultimate of sins; every spell an erotic indulgence with the sinister lords of hell. Silmaroth never runs out of potential witches to trial, and there is always a stake and fire wood ready for another burning of the hell-spawned. Some family lines have been marked by witchcraft throughout the centuries and being born in one of these families is indeed an ominous event, for fingers will be easily pointed in their direction.

The HeartlandsThis region lies at the very heart of Silmar, and is the King’s own lands where only he taxes the population and where his estates can be found in every major city. Here the social elite gathers and here the King annually choose his new guardsmen recruits from among thousands of hopeful. The heartlands are important due to the abundant farmlands, the strategic location at the heart of the western Kingdom and especially due to the important weapon industry. The smithies of Silmar are never quiet and the steel forged in the Heartlands is indeed of superior quality.

The Capital City of KoenigsburgThe Capital was founded nearly eight hundred years ago, in the year 234 after the landfall, by refugees from the cataclysm on the old continent. It was the first place where the royal heir of the throne of Cal’Duahn wanted to settle down, due to the beauty of the surrounding landscape. The Old City is nested at a huge shelf of the mountain Sebelon where the Royal River cascades down from the highlands and run across the shelf, forming a small body of water called the Prince’s Pool, before the water once again falls of the side of the mountain and thunderously crash down at the base of the mountain where the New City has been built after the Old City no longer had space available. The legends tell that the Prince of Cal’Duahn was so impressed by the location that he forgot everything about practicality and demanded his royal abode built there.

Important centres of activity throughout town remains the awe inspiring Old City, which visitors can only gape in amazement at, it’s robust Norman architecture mixed with foliage and flowers grown by the Royal Gardeners in true Cal’Duahn tradition. Other places of note are the Citadel of the Order, where the HexenJaegers, the Holy Order, has its base of operations. Their grip of the population of the western realms is so powerful that some say the might of the Grand Cardinal HexenJaeger rival that of the King. The Temple of Fhalgharod should not be forgotten, and is a white walled complex of golden domed buildings built atop a hill in the New City. Here the worshippers of the Sun gather every Sunday morning on the huge temple plaza to praise their lord, the rising sun. This is a colossal event which draws nearly one hundred thousand citizens and pilgrims, and their chanting can be heard even outside the city walls. Not only is this an important religious gathering, but a way to prove how pious and devout you really are and thus many people make a show of themselves in order to get noticed.

Koenigsburg is not the largest city of the heartlands, nor is it the most productive, but it is where the court gathers and where all the major political decisions are made. In Koenigsburg the social elite shops their requisites on Jewellers Street and they party at court gatherings or on one of the countless fetes thrown by the nobility and other members of the social elite. It is in many ways the true face of Silmaroth; a place of beauty and festivities, but also of facades, hidden motives and fervent burning of that which they do not understand.

The City of TherbenThe City of Therben, perched atop a small hillock and sprawling out on the surrounding plains, is the major production centre of the Heartlands. Here the streets are often filled with the dark smog from the ever burning furnaces of the huge smithy complexes and only in fierce wind can fresh air be inhaled without the stench of burnt coal, human sweat and molten metal. This does not bother the inhabitants of Therben overly much, as the city primarily consist of smiths and apprentices of the craft, aside from the weapon merchants and the army supply corps. Of course the city has a large number of other citizens, but at least half the population of about one hundred and ten thousand citizens is directly tied up to the weapon industry in one way or another (weapon merchants, smiths, apprentices, porters, caravan drivers and guards, army supply personnel, coal merchants, ore merchants, etc…) After a visit to Therben, a PC will sneeze black snot and his clothes will smell of smoke and sweat.

The dark and foreboding atmosphere of Therben is the home of an oddly high spirited population, and the unadorned red brick homes of Therben are hospitable places where friendship is highly valued. Of course they are preoccupied with the danger of Sin, just like any other place in Silmar, but their definition of Sin is looser than in other places. This has bothered the Holy Order to such a degree that they recently opened a “Moral Office” within that city, with two appointed guardians of moral and piety.

The City of WilhelmsburgImperious Wilhelmsburg is the trade centre of the Kingdom and also the largest city in the north. With its more than five hundred thousand inhabitants, it sprawls across the countryside, completely engulfing the middle sized Wilhelm Lake, and actually containing two royal palaces; the Old Castle and the Beuvian Castle, as well as a host of elaborate mansions of the nobility. The city is known for its beautiful architecture, and the use of white marble has always been fashionable within the city walls, although the city fortresses and defences are of purely grey tiled Norman style architecture. There are five distinct city districts: Trader’s Town, King’s District, the Slum, Wilhelm Lake, and River Town.

Trader’s Town is where the city is most vibrant and alive, where hawkers stand at every corner and where small plazas frequently appear along the plentiful city streets and avenues. The City Watch moves in full squads here, as the area is ripe with thieves as well as agents from other nations, notably from the empire. There are a lot of foreign residents here, and this is the area where other nations keep their embassies.

The King’s District is where the Old Castle was built, and is sometimes referred to as the Old Town. It is a quiet district where the “old money” lives, and the residents own walled compounds, often with lush gardens within the walls. It is a great place for looking at architecture, gargoyles, fountains and beautifully decorated walls and buildings.

The Slum is the part of the city which is in the greatest state of decay and ruin. The buildings, although beautifully made, are old and falling apart. The Slum is organized in several ghettos and each ghetto is dominated by a criminal gang of cutthroats. Apart from that, the slum is full of passion and real people. Here the HexenJaegers hold little sway, even though there are few more enthusiastic bystanders at the burnings, than those hailing from the slum. Life is cheap here, and there is no recognized guild structure whatsoever. The rest of the city is dominated by guilds, but no such thing as a thieves’ guild can be found in the slum.

Wilhelm Lake is the area surrounding the lake, as well as the four islands within the lake itself. One island has been reserved as a park, and the citizens can be ferried across to it for a small fee. Another island was the first to be populated when the Duke of Sharaldon built his exquisite summer palace there. Evil tongues whispered that the Duke’s Palace by far outshone the King’s Palace and this prompted the King to construct a new palace, this on the third island. That Palace came to be known as the Beuvian Castle and with its white marble arches and buttresses it is more a piece of art than any actual stronghold. It was devoted to the memory of the fallen Kingdom of Cal’Duahn, where the Silmarites originally hail from, and is renowned for its great beauty and fabulous artistry. The last and largest island became occupied by diverse members of the social elite and is a city district in its own right, commonly referred to as Wilhelm Island.

The River Town is the area surrounding the Oloan River, which runs straight to the coast. The river is deep enough that large vessel can navigate it, canals having been dug in places where the river was formerly impassable. The River Town is heavily bridged and full of rowdy taverns and storehouses. It is outside the city walls and the architecture is mainly wooden, except for the larger warehouses and the dock facilities as well as the bridges.

The NorthlandsThe Northlands are vast areas of nearly uninhabited icy wilderness, where the glaciers of the last ice age have yet to fully withdraw. There are no major cities here, but a few towns of note. In the northlands a rough strain of Silmarites live and the only things they have in common with southerners are the penchant for hunting witches and a common language, although their dialects can be pretty thick.

Cape MurderCape Murder is the northernmost tip of the Dhargenaas continent, and is a windswept and cruel place where two seas meet and ferocious storms batter the shoreline. It is a site of importance in some rituals of religion and sorcery, so the HexenJaegers have a local constabulary nearby to catch any would be sorcerors in the act. It is not a desired post within the hierarchy of the Order, and it is considered a punishment to be relocated there.

The RiftThis is a huge canyon located close to the battered plain. The legends claim that two powerful sorcerers once battled here and that the earth was ripped asunder in their cataclysmic struggle. This theory only fuels the peoples’ conviction that warlocks and witches are dangerous and potentially life threatening, and thus deserves to be burnt. Within the rift some pretty rare minerals have been discovered and the canyon has become home to an entire town of mine workers and caravan drivers. Rift Town this place is called, and is a place full of makeshift structures. It is a place where men work during day, and drink and sleep with whores in the evening. Thievery of rare minerals has occurred and the penalty of doing so is death at the end of a rope. From this very area the Holy Order receives their magic defying metal and from this area the rare ingredient Oorklse, which strengthens the steel in the Silmarite swords, is extracted.

The Battered PlainThe Battered Plain is a huge region which is sparsely forested and filled with waist high grass. It is the home of several tribes of horse nomads, the aboriginal population of Silmar. While they are not recognized as Silmarites, the government leaves the heathens alone and in return the Silmarite caravans are left alone, save for some bouts of trading and bartering. Some sages theorize that the nomads are the descendants of the advanced Bluethon culture, of which remains can be found, scattered throughout the continent, but this theory often receives the butt end of jokes comparing amazing feats of architecture with dumb horse nomads living in crude huts and makeshift tents. Still the nomads are renowned as great horsemen and their fine steeds fetch great amounts of money on the Heartland marketplaces.

The Ruins of LimmeranThese are the ancient ruins of the Bluethon City of Limmeran. In its prime it must have been an amazing sight, as the ruins cover twice the ground that the city of Wilhelmsburg does. These rusty coloured ruins feature soaring towers whose doors cannot be breached, strange mosaic patterns raised on a dais, and vast underground labyrinths and catacombs. The ruins are not known to be haunted, unless one counts the countless treasure hunters searching the ruins and occasionally murdering each other in their quest for loot.

MorchynMorchyn is a huge swamp area, where icy cold water and strange creatures exist. There is nothing much hospitable about this swamp and given the fact that it is named after a strange species of insects whose eggs are laid within the flesh of animal or human craniums, it is not a popular place to visit. As the eggs slowly mature, the hatched larvae get their nourishment from the flesh and brain of the host, a process which slowly drives the host insane with pain and hysteria, before death mercifully arrives. The swamp itself has been rumoured to host a witches’ coven known as the Morchyn Coven, but the Holy Order has not seen fit to mount an expedition into that dreary swamp.

The Grey CoastThe Grey Coast is the western shore of Silmar, where the sea violently crash against the scarred and battered coastline. Deep green coniferous forests seem to follow the shoreline endlessly and the Silmarites, unlike the Ardamians, have no coastal towns, as their larger towns and cities are located upstream the major rivers, which most often are navigable by larger ships. When Cal’Duahn fell during the cataclysm, the legends tell of horrendous monsters erupting from the ocean, and that memory ensures that Silmarites won’t ever build coastal towns, although a few fishing villages does exist.

KoniegsseeThis is a huge inland lake some twenty miles from the Grey Coast. It is the first lake that the survivors of Cal’Duahn encountered, and it is the settled area which is closest to the coast. The Koniegssee is a lowland paradise, bordered by a mixed forest, small fishing villages and reed filled sand beaches. It is a typical example of serene Silmar landscapes, where everyone would be happy had it not been for the threat of the empire and the dangers of being accused of witchcraft. One village, Tharesiel, is actually the oldest Silmarian settlement on the Dhargenaas continent and its Chapel to Fhalgharod, the Sun God, was founded as long ago as year 146 after the landfall.

The BorderlandsThe borderlands are the war torn areas close to the border of the Southern Empire. Here several border baronies can be found, along with the powerful Duchy of Borenland, wherein lie such important border towns as Carloburg, Eckholt, Sanlich and Malenna. This region is dominated by rolling hills and is densely populated, for it lays close to the formerly independent city states of the now Conquered lands of the Empire. This region used to see heavy caravan traffic; spice, silks and horses from the Empire, armour, grain and fish from Belemar, along with the exotic goods of conquered cities such as ÃƒÆ’Ã¢â‚¬Âºr-Kanesh and Kel-Keledon. Now the only traffic from the south is the armies of the empires, which has now invaded roughly half of the Borderlands.

The Duchy of BorenlandThe Duchy of Borenland is home to the Duke Stein of Borenland, a descendant from the Kingdoms finest line of commanders and generals. As a token of the Crown’s gratitude, Stein’s family line, the Borenlanders, got their own province at the heart of the trade routes to the south, ensuring the entire family line a vast income from border taxes and trade. Alas as fate would have it, the relations with the south eventually soured to the point of war and Duke Stein lost half his Duchy to the Empire, which invaded while he was in the capital, courting the Countess of Grazenhof.

Borenland is a rich Duchy, ripe with natural resources and with several key towns and such important fortresses as Malenna and Carloburg. The army of Borenland is one of the best trained within the Kingdom and the recent defeats at Malenna and Eckholt has shaken most of the men of the Kingdom to the core of their being. The King is outraged and desperate, and has ordered Duke Stein back to rally the defences of the Kingdom. Meanwhile the national armies are mustering in the city of Arbad (in Ardamien) and outside the city of Therben (in the Heartlands).

The Western CyllereansThe Cyllerean Mountains is a vast mountain range splitting half of the Dhargenaas continent in two. This half is mostly Kingdom territory, but it cannot be claimed that the Kingdom rules the central Cyllereans, nor much of the Western mountains. Therein lays the Dwarven Kingdom, where the miserly and greedy dwarves swindle honest Silmarites out of their hard earned money. Still they are an important source of trade, and their craftsmanship is unparalleled, if a bit costly. Only two dwarven cities are known to man: Khazad-Khazan, the warriors’ hive, and Khun-Khuzdhul, their holy city, both within a territory Silmaroth claim as its own, though the Dwarves have shown no sign to pay the cumulative taxes that the Crown of Silmaroth claim.

Lion RoadMost of the Kingdom’s claim to the mountain comes down to three passes and mountain roads. Lion Pass is the prime trade route between Silmar and Ardamien, and this pass sees heavy caravan traffic. There are outposts every ten miles, so the four month long crossing of the mountain range should prove fairly safe to a caravan travelling to Ardamien through Lion Pass (Which is often called the portal to Silmar) and further on Lion Road.

The Lost RoadThe Lost Road got its name from the fact that it often is overrun by the different barbarian tribes of the Cyllereans, such as the Ugeroth and the Tweani. Considered that the Cyllereans covers such a huge area, entire barbarian nations can be found within. While they do not have the manpower or the resources of the Kingdom and the Empire, they prove to be fearless opponents which often swarm outposts, slaying all within. In addition, the worship of Chaos Entities is popular within the tribes, and strange fiends and entities are rumoured to travel the mountains. Sometimes beastly men can be seen alongside cohorts of barbarian tribals, fighting like they were brethren. This has caused the barbarians to be feared and mistrusted in both the Kingdom as well as in the Empire. There are tribals who have entered the lowlands and offered their service, but most are repelled by the hate and distrust they encounter among the civilized folk. Most of those reaching Silmar perish at the stake.

Dead Legion RoadThis is the third path and it lies close to the Imperial section of the Cyllereans, within what was once the old Empire of Belemar. The road got its name from an ancient battle between Royal Ardamian Knights and a Legion of Belemar. As the name indicates, the Ardamians butchered the legionaries and the name stuck. It is considered a dangerous route nowadays, as Imperial raiders harass and plunder the caravans.

The Province of ArdamothThe Province of Ardamoth, or Ardamien as is the modern name, was the first of the Old Continent settlements on the Dhargenaas Continent. Of course the Imperials from Aumethorion had already founded the Careshian Empire (The Southern Empire) and the Belemarians had founded the Empire of Belemar, but the Ardamians were the first from the Old Continent and arrived just 10 years after the landfall.

Of Cal’Duahn rebel stock, the Ardamians fled the harsh justice of their peers, for they were free thinkers and enjoyed physical challenges and sports. While they do possess the same mean streak as Silmarians, they are not zealous to a fault. In Cal’Duahn free thought was not considered a good thing if strict rules and doctrines were broken, and this led some of the Ardamien leaders to rebel against their rulers. The rebellion was a lost cause, the might of the Silmarian strain of the Cal’Duahn too great, and the rebels fled the Old Continent nearly one hundred years before the cataclysm that decimated their brethren.

Paradoxically these enemies of old would prove to become staunch allies when faced with the perils of the Southern Empires of Belemar and Caresh, and when the two empires merged, the Queen of Ardamien, then Ardamoth, married the Silmarian King to seal a mutual protection union between their countries.

Ardamians prove to be quite different than the Silmarians. The HexenJaegers move silently here, lest they end up lynched by a mob of enraged citizens. The people is more closely knit together and burning one of their friends at the stake for supposed wizardry is not something people like to witness. Thus the HexenJaegers kidnap and burn their victims in this region and their wear anonymous clothing to hide their identities while in densely populated areas. They do like to ride in force and terrorize isolated villages, but this habit has made them even more unpopular. They have a hard time of convincing the population of the holiness of their cause as they have no cataclysm to strike terror at the heart of the free willed people.

Still the Ardamians have enough flaws to go around. They are proud and haughty and if given the chance they will brag about themselves and their kin, for hours at end. They are brutal and physical puns like punching each other while unaware is considered good humour. Strength is important and only the Monks of Ketange-Ishatal preserve the old ways of physical perfection and spiritual enlightenment. The latter is often forgotten by the regular Ardamien citizen and the intellectual shallowness of the regular Ardamian is the subject of several Imperial jokes, while the Silmarite jokes mostly centre on perceived Ardamian perversions and miscomprehensions.

The Lond Bhalas PeninsulaThis huge peninsula is the home of the Bhalas Ardamians and the region is mostly cold, hilly wilderness. The Ardamians live in scattered villages here, much like the Cyllerean Barbarians, and they are a mixed people where Ardamian-Barbarian marriages frequently occur. The names of Bhalas Ardamians reflect their union with the barbarians and they have even taken to tattooing elaborate patterns on parts of their body, in true barbarian fashion. The Bhalas Ardamians are renowned raiders and their coastal villages have all at least one long ship in which the male villagers depart to raid the southern coastlines as well as distant places like the Acaian Islands and even Valkarhoth.

The City of Lond BhalasThe peninsula is named after the big city of Lond Bhalas, which is recognized as the greatest port in all of Silmaroth. The cobblestone, beam and thatched roof architecture lends a certain rustic charm to the city, which is the home of nearly seventy thousand Bhalas Ardamians. There is no proper city wall, but the port area is one huge fortification, with tremendous towers guarding the sea entrance as well as the entrance from the city itself.

There is nothing much special or magic about Lond Bhalas, and evil tongues claim that is why they have such an urge to leave the area. Indeed Bhalas Ardamians can be found in every part of the world, and often work as mercenaries or body guards. They value physical perfection above all else and are often excellent warriors.

The Hills of the Arakosh TribesThese hills lay at the very northernmost border of Ardamien, in an area which has yet to be conquered by either Kingdom or Empire. There are some scattered Ardamien outposts here, but the Arakosh Hillsmen travels these hills mostly unchecked. It is the Ardamien frontier and life here is a constant struggle for survival and skirmishing frequently occur. There is some Arakosh Hillsmen who has joined the Ardamian society as fishermen, hunters or mercenaries, but these are just a minority of the tribes.

The Bay of ArdamThe Bay of Ardam is at the very heart of Ardamien. Here lie the provincial capital of Argalath and the fortress town of Arbad. It is a relatively small area, but the most bountiful in terms of natural resources and arable land. Here the Kingdom produces its prime grain, cattle and even iron. They even extract gems like amethyst and emerald from the local Athiahn Hills as well as the rare Ekeiat resin, extracted from the evergreen Ekeiat trees which can only be found in Ardamien, and with an oddly high frequency around the Bay of Ardam. This resin is vital in the production of alchemist items such as fire oil and smoke bombs.

The area surrounding the bay is dotted with towns and is where more than 70 percent of the population lives. This is where the Crown Prince has his palace within the Royal Forest of Abelarden, sometimes described as “his highness playground” by mocking Ardamians. The bay area is the only part of Ardamien in which the threat of Barbarians, Goblins or Mountain Trolls is not ever present, and even wolves and bears are rare.

The Provincial Capital of ArgalathFormerly the Capital of Ardamoth, the proud City of Argalath is the cultural centre of the Ardamians. Built on the spot where the rivers Argalath and Gelthienord both meet the Bay of Ardam, the city is densely forested with trees in every garden and along every street. For this very reason the city is often called the city of trees, and combined with the grey, cobbled architecture this city is a coarse but beautiful place. There are no snobs or dandy nobility within the city and the Warden, the Earl of Ardam, is most often a no-nonsense down to earth kind of guy, the usual racial traits of the Ardamians aside. The atmosphere in the city is so casual that the Crown Princes of Silmaroth long since refused to live there and instead took residence within the Forest of Abelarden, where a miniature version of the Koenigsburg Court resides, playing the games of the Western nobility.

The City of ArbadFor long but a town, a recent wave of immigrants from the war in the south has boosted the population threefold and now it is the biggest city in the north, east of the Cyllereans. Arbad has been constructed on the slope of the small Mountain Odhan, and the steep sides of the mountain require the roads to zigzag up towards the summit, where the Earl’s Castle has been built. Decidedly the most impressive Ardamian City, Arbad has recently grown a huge slum on the outskirts of the city perimeters. A huge shantytown of huts and tents it is, outside of the city walls. The foulburgh* has problems concerning sewage and crime, but the Earl has recently tripled the patrols and thus hopes to cope with the situation. On the Northern side of the City, the Face of mount Odhan has a rather spectacular cliff face and the drop from the summit down to the beach of Ardam Bay is more than two thousand feet.

*Foulburgh: The part of the city outside the city walls. In this case the shantytown.

Lake Tarnil and the WoodlandsLake Tarnil is also referred to as the Silver Lake, and is a huge inland sea completely surrounded by a deciduous forest. In the sagas the Tarnil Forest was cleansed of evil some three hundred years ago, when the newly ascended God Sil’Durhon and his clergy raised an army to purge the forest of elves. The maidens captured during this brief war were later chained within the temples of Sil’Durhon and there they must repent their sins for the rest of their eternal lives. At times the High Priests of Sil’Durhon pity these maidens and bless them with the seed of life, resulting in the scions of Sil’Durhon, the half-elves, champions of Good, who are tutored and trained to become true members of the faith. Due to the recent schism between the Empire and the Kingdom, the church of Sil’Durhon has fully withdrawn from the north and pledged their full support of the Imperial Throne. This has led these priests and half elves to be branded as traitors in Silmaroth.

The Lake is surrounded by a number of fishing villages, as well as the town of Bhurad, which is the staging point of caravans entering the Cyllereans by the Lost Road. The southern bank of the Lake is where the border swamp begins and within this swamp the Ardamians have constructed three fortifications to defend their borders from the Empire. Within this very swamp the fighting has reached a stalemate, the Imperials hitherto unable to dislodge the Ardamians from their mosquito ridden strongholds. The rumours even whisper that within one of the Strongholds, only a handful of survivors continue their resistance, half dead of starvation; fed only by the rotting meat of their fallen comrades, they laugh madly when the Imperials charge, fighting beyond the point of death, denying the Imperials their victory.

The Eastern CyllereansThe Eastern Cyllereans are pretty much like the west; harsh, barren lands where half giants, goblins, wolves, trolls, and countless barbarian tribes live. The mountain passes are nearly impassable during winter and hazardous during summer. While the mountains are surely the home of many hostile creatures, the Ardamians have a certain kinship with the Mountain Barbarians and they are tolerated better than most. Still this does not exclude frequent battles, as the barbarians fight among themselves as gladly as against zealous Silmarites or haughty Imperials. They only respect their own clan, and those clans they have sworn allegiance to.

The P’tuah PlateauThe P’tuah Plateau is the common denominator of the highland plains in the middle of the Cyllereans. Ardamian colonizers have made their way here, and they have adopted the clan structure of the nearby barbarian tribes. They still pay taxes to their lord, the Earl of P’tuah, and he sends his taxes to the crown. Still there is no grand revenue from this region, as there are mostly goat herders and warrior clansmen in the area. The Earl of P’tuah is unknown in the Royal Court of Koenigsberg and it is just as well. He is usually just an unwashed, rude barbarian anyhow; at least he would be in the eyes of the courtiers.

There is one location of note on the P’tuah Plateau. The Ketange Monastery is a haven for Ardamian intellectuals, sorcerers and the otherwise spiritually gifted. Located close to the aboriginal caves of the Plateau, the monks harbour knowledge, even embroidering sacred texts and precious information into the fabric of their own clothing, the fabled Ketange-Robes. In particular they are preoccupied with the notion of evil, and their discoveries have left some of the monks addle brained or half mad with panic, denial and despair. Still the monks who retain their calm take care of their unfortunate brethren and thus the monastery can be a frightening place, filled with the screams of the tormented souls.

Sample Organizations, Cults and Orders of SilmarothThe Royal KnightsThe Royal Knights is a detachment of guardsmen from the royal guard. They receive elite training and highly ornamental as well as somewhat functional equipment. Only the very best recruits from noble and highly pious families may get the training necessary to become a Royal Knight. In battle these knights ride alongside the King and the Crown Prince, safely perusing the battle from the rear of the ranks. It is known to be one of the safest martial professions in the realms and such young men surely attract the attention of pretty young women, eager for the perfect match. They are the heroes of the Silmarites, and when they occasionally enter battle to save their King, they do so with competitive ferocity, eager to be the first to slay those insolent enough to threaten their King. They are impetuous but not that eager to enter the carnage of front line battle.

The Order of the SwordThe Order of the Sword is a Kingdom Order based in the Malheuerat Fortification, a major stronghold on the Lion Road in the Cyllerean Mountains. The members of the Order can only enter through invitation, and once a member there is no return, for the secrets of the Order are sacrosanct. The Order teaches a unique combination of Swordplay and, some would say, Sorcery, using rift channelling to imbue themselves with enhanced abilities and techniques, and to imbue their blades with enhanced attributes. While their rift channelling in not earth shattering in scope, they do manage to achieve slight advantages this way.

The Order focus primarily on fencing techniques and the ritualistic magic involved is not a major field of study. Members of the order tend to favour combat in which agility plays a role, but they have no objections about wearing panzer when they enter chaotic battles. Their use of ritual magic is a well guarded secret, a necessity due to the zealous nature of the Silmarites.

The Dreamer CultistsThe Dreamer Cultists believe that reality is just the broken dream of an entity known as the dreamer. Our dreams are the real reality they claim and thus these cultists spend most of their lives studying in vast libraries within the realms of sleep. They favour narcotics and other dream enhancing substances, and entering one of their temples can be an unnerving experience, as nearly everyone therein will be in a comatose state.

The Monks of Ketange-IshatalThese are the ancient Holders of Lore, keepers of secrets; the Monks of Ketange-Ishatal live quiet lives of meditation and contemplation on the P’tuah Plateau. While they receive combat training, especially in the art of wrestling and staff fighting, the Monks focus primarily on lore and each monk has a field of specialty.

The Asdarien Vale Witches’ CovenThe Asdarien Vale Coven is the only openly active Coven of Silmaroth. The HexenJaegers know each of their names, know their whereabouts, has promised a large reward for their heads, but has yet to kill a single member of the Coven. The reason is that these witches dwell in Asdarien Vale, in a forest known as Silent wood, and they are the concubines of the Wyrm of Asdarien Vale, a multi gendered dragon fiend, unseen by any but the witches and the one they please in weekly orgies of obscene pleasure. The tales that reach the Silmarites about the blasphemous orgies within Asdarien Vale sicken and enrage the population, and there is a vast reward offered for the slaying of the slithering, phallic wyrm of mist and mystery.

The Witches specialize in divination and summoning and many a scheming Silmarite noble has visited the wild-eyed, nude, mud covered witches one week and condemned them the next. Apparently just as surprised as their fellow citizens that demon spawn would manifest in their rivals mansion, a telltale sign of Asdarien Coven involvement.

The Iron CabalThe Iron Cabal is an underground organization of warlocks and sorcerers. Life for a magic user is difficult at best in Silmar, and this Cabal operates a number of hideaways and secret facilities throughout the Kingdom. The Iron Cabal is ruled by a council of sage sorcerers and membership can only be attained through apprenticeship to a current Iron Cabal member.

The HexenjaegersThe HexenJaegers, often referred to as the Holy Order, is an order of Holy Warriors whose sole purpose is to discover and banish the presence of evil. According to their doctrines, witchcraft is the ultimate of evil, and their puritan soldiers can be discovered everywhere within the empire. Every HexenJaeger receive a magic defying necklace upon admission to the order and thus they prove to be lethal adversaries to any mage. Still such entities as the Asdarien Wyrm prove to be fatal for them and steel is as effective as ever against a HexenJaeger out for your blood.

The White Shield Caravan CompanyThe White Shield is a typical Caravan Company, operating from Therben and transporting coal from Gerbenburg to Therben, as well as Iron from Ardamien or the Grey Hills to Therben. They hire mercenaries as caravan guards and they train merchants in the art of leadership and numismatics. A White Shield Caravan will typically be outfitted with a lot of guards and a huge number of wagons. They transport goods in large quantities and believe in the safety of the convoy principle.

Sons of Silmar, Mercenary CompanyThe Sons of Silmar is one of the largest Mercenary Companies within the Kingdom. They only admit Silmarites from the Western Province and are haughty and disdainful towards everyone else. They refer to themselves as the pure blooded and are considered, by non-Silmarites, to be racist, chauvinist pigs with a penchant for ambush and slaughter. They are currently rumoured to be in the Duchy of Borenland, fighting for the Kingdom.

Sharee used to be the company's mage, an useful asset, despite her character and the heresy inhrent in her. While not especially loved - during 'good cop, bad cop' games the captain used to play, she inevitably played the bad one - quite a few mercenaries were glad to have crippled limbs mended and dire enemies scorched by sorcerous flame. Even if it meant to tag along with an elf.

Still, she was never easy to deal with - hard to appease, easy to anger, most of the time aloof and cold, sarcastic and proud to a fault, she certaily was not their epitome of a fair maiden, though some of the mercs suggested that all this acting up cannot possibly be real.All the years, she seemed distant, shrouding herself in mystery and an aura of almost palpable fear; though some of the mercs claimed to have shared her sheets, and that she was wholly different then, their claims were met with but mockery by their fellows.At times, she seemed driven and lost in thought.An attribute that redeemed her a little in the eyes of her fellows (though some never forgave that whip of hers) was that while se considered them filthy bastards, they were her bastards - to be defended against other bastards furiously.

Complementing her behaviour nicely, Sharee's attire does ephasize the fact that she's a witch, not a nice one to boot: long robes of scarlet and black, along with a light breastplate of dark steel, are adorned with silver chains and other jewelry, with embedded amethyst stones, and all these bearing sigils of power. Likewise, her ears are pierced by several earrings, and her left face is adorned with a sorcerous tattoo.Still, she possesses enough common sense to don a hooded cloak and veil her face when amongst outsiders.Of elfin build, Sharee does appear like a surreal porcellain doll - slender, pale to the point of being white, with long straight black hair, blue eyes with a violet (violent?) tint and lips red as freshly-shed blood.Certainly not to everyone's taste, but she could not care less.

Logged

"Captain, the buttocks are moving from the pink into the red and purple spectrum! We cannot maintain this rate of spanking any longer!"

Kayne "Flare" Redleaf is the company's alchemical expert. He is very intelligent, his mind filled with dozens of random bits of information, and he carries with him vials of various chemicals, herbs and minerals, ready at a moment's notice to be combined into a weapon of destruction. His temperament is very relaxed and calm, a neccessity for anyone intending to creating alchemical concoctions in the heat of battle. He is known for his perfectly steady hands despite arrows and spells flying past his head.

He is extremely slow to anger, so long as his personal life is not pried into, to which his reaction is murderous. Flare smiles often, and regularly gets excited, especially when learning something, such as a new alchmical mixture, though he is extremely tight lipped when it comes to his past. He has long dark hair which he ties back into a ponytail and his eyes are a deep blue. He has a long scar which runs from his left shoulder across his chest and down toward his bellybutton, though no one knows what it is from, since he is very tightlipped about it. When the weather gets damp and cold he tends to favor his left shoulder, hinting at an old injury, though he won't speak of this either. He has a tattoo on his right shoulderblade of a large, dark red and black leaf.

Flare always wears a long, dark leather coat covered with pockets both inside and out. The pockets are always filled with various alchemical ingredients and mixtures. He also carries an odd spear, a long black shaft made of ash topped with a blade similar to a sai; a large central blade with two very small serrated blades running alongside the first. The spearshaft is covered in painted runes, which he claims are for luck and protection. He has a couple rituals he can perform, one of which he calls "Lucid Dreaming" in which he falls into a restless sleep that allows him to control his dreams and through these dreams, contact his ancestors for advice and wisdom.

Dietrich is of average height, and owns good strength in his upper body.His black hair, long and tied back, is shot with streaks of grey.When he was younger Dietrich took a blade in the left side of his face, leaving a deep scar of shiny tissue across his cheek and right down trough the jaw line. The jaw healed, cleft and deformed, twisting his face oddly. His face is sunken in around a lump of a nose and heavily wrinkled under the eyes.He carries a rusty mail coat that offers protection for the torso and shoulders and down past his knees.For protection against the cold he wraps himself in a great cloak sewn together from different dog skins. His rusty and tattered battle sword is sheated across his back in a massive leather scabbard. He also carries a net of weighted cords used to immobilize foes and a sword breaker.

Dietrich may come across as gruff, but he cares for those he bonds with and will do his best to protect them. But he often remains quiet in the company of others, preferring solitude. He is quite humourless and forthright. When he is not on the move he tends to pace back and forth quite alot.

**Should his background story be here? I only posted what is appereant for the others.**

And I sent you the answer per pm. No it is not to too unusual, though I agree that 'tis unconventional. As I said then: It is entirely up to you. You still have to observe the stats thingie though.

EchoMirage: Fininshed creating PCAlec: Finished, but needs to resend me the edited versionCaptain: Okayed, but needs to send the full version with stats to me AND post hereMike: Okayed, but needs to send the full version with stats to me

Before I start, I just want you all to know that the character idea is a touch unusual, and if you think that your characters could not work with this character, I will change it.

Name: Domunsoka

Somewhere, far away, on a distant shore of a distant sea, a pair of fishermen netted a strange catch, a heavy catch which was still and without struggle, and which made no attempt to escape. At fist, thinking it was a mass of vegetation, one of the men wished to throw it back. But another cautioned against it, saying that perhaps it was a treasure from the bottom of the ocean.As they hauled up their odd catch, it became apparent that it was no mass of vegetation, but neither was it a treasure. Instead, it was something all the more enigmatic-It was a man, a wooden man, with joints of gears and chains, and a blank wooden face carved with a single, stylized eye.The fishermen made superstitious signs, and again it was advocated that the thing be thrown back. But as they argued over this sodden body of wood and brass and iron, along the beach came walking a merchants' boy, who was about searching for valuable sea-shells and strange things (like the artificial man) which sometimes wash upon beaches such as these.The merchant's boy, seeing the wooden man, immediately alerted his masters, who came forth, offering a payment which was, for fishermen, a vast sum. It was immediately surrendered forth.As the merchants travelled through the many lands between that forgotten beach and the chill north of Silmaroth, many saw and were amazed by that wooden man. The merchants discovered that when the lever upon it's spine was pulled, the mannikin came to life, moving with smooth, whirring motions. When commanded, the man would do whatever nearly any task, though in many it had to be shown how (neither merchant ever discovered how it was that this eyeless thing could see, but it recieved instruction anyway). In order to make even more money, the merchants taught the object-man to dance and perform silly mannerisms to a short skit. They named it Domunsoka, a word that means "ghost", and this they painted on it's chest in many languages and scripts.But little did the merchants know, that during the night, the merchants' boy would come to the mannikin (which sat still and lifeless by the merchandise to scare off thieves), bring it to life, and teach it small things, how to play at ring-and-penny, how to say rhymes (though the mute, throatless thing never repeated), how to play hopscotch.One day, after many months of travel, the merchants' boy made a mistake. Carrying a load of extremely precious Muugath bone-sculpture, he tripped, and the entire mass of tiny intricate figurines crashed to the ground, shattering to splintery bits.The merchants, furious, took the boy into the wagon. For three hours, the sound of their shouts, the sound of the lash, and the whimpers of the boy were eminently audible. The mannikin stood by, still as stone.The boy did not emerge under daylight; not until the darkness came did the merchants drag forth the wrapped body of their young servant, casting it into a ravine.The next day, the merchants continued their journey. Rolling north, they eventually reached a river-ford where they broke an axel of their wagon, and stopped to fix it. The repair was slowed by the muddy, wet weather. The overcast darkness occluded the sun, and made the day a blue murk. And underneath the tarp, the wooden man stirred on it's own.Later that week, the keepers of the ford, going to investigate the scattered camp and wagon upon the far bank, found two strangled corpses, their necks deeply bruised with the imprint of artificial, wooden hands with metal joints.For many years, Domunsoka, the ghost doll, wandered the world northward, mutely surviving in it's mechanical fashion. In many places, it fought inquisitors and witch-hunters who saw it as a demon, or peasants who attacked it in wild fear.Coming into the land of Silmaroth, the wooden man was struck by a strange desire, and in the night added itself surreptitiously to the inventory at the back of a curio shop; it began to search for something.It did not have to wait long. Seizing upon opportunity, it slipped, cloaked, into the back of a band of mercenaries, and followed them into the mountains.At first, the mercenaries, too, attacked it, but when it lifted not a hand to fight them, they slowly backed off. After days of bickering, Domunsoka was accepted as a sort of odd helper. Most of the mercenaries of the company have come to think of it as a sort of strange pet which fights alongside them.Domunsoka is alive and self-aware, but does not "think" in the way a human would. It cannot speak or really verbalize it's thoughts, and knows no sign language. It can manage a few written words, but it does not have a large vocabulary. The ghost doll does not feel emotions, save one- guilt, guilt for the killings of it's masters so long ago. It has two motivations- the first, to cure it's guilt, to rectify the killings and somehow tell their families where they perished; it's second is to experience true emotions.

Melee: 4Ranged: 2Subterfuge: 3Self-Construction(Equivalent to healing, but subject to availability of parts): 2

Domunsoka cannot speak. It can, however, fight rather well (a skill it learned from years of lonely travel), and can perform many odd skills. It can do a strange foreign dance which the merchants taught it.Domunsoka is immune to small piercing weapons and missiles. It does not bleed or catch diseases. But heat causes it's oil to harden and bake onto it's gears and chains, and cold causes it's joints to lock. It can float (though it does not swim), but water causes rusting in it's metal parts.It has a mind, and despite an odd thought-process, it is affected by those sorceries which twist the mind (in fact, though it has not experienced any, it might be pleasantly surprised by those spells which generate emotions).

well... the character is weird, sort of like Moku-Jin (I guess that was its name) from some PS2 brawling game... Tekken? Dunno. Anyway - I have no problem with it, I just wonder whether you will be content to play a speechless character.While it is interesting, I don't think it has enough room for development, likewise, other characters will have a problem relating to it, and fail to acknowledge it as a real person.

Logged

"Captain, the buttocks are moving from the pink into the red and purple spectrum! We cannot maintain this rate of spanking any longer!"

I got a question about the timeline:The game has begun in medias res: in mid-combat. This is NOT during the ambush, but as you are fleeing the ambush site some hours later. The reason the barbarians are in front of you, as opposed to chasing you from the behind (they should be about 5-10 minutes behind you), is unknown but troubling. More information might follow in-game.